Gran Turismo’s GT Academy is one of the coolest things ever to come out of the intersection of video games and the real world.

Because the series pays so much attention to faithful recreation of real racing experiences, it’s used as a training aid by professional racers – and one day somebody had the bright idea of using it to recruit potential new stars. National winners of the competition attend a training camp in the UK, and one grand champion will go on to become professional racers, if they so choose.

There have been four GT Academy seasons so far, and the fifth kicks off today. Shack News reports Sony aid it begins at midnight, but didn’t say which midnight. Happily, if you fire up Gran Turismo 6 it ought to be pretty obvious whether qualifiers are open or not. Just look for the GT Academy event to participate.

The online qualifier portion of the competition runs till June 16. The fastest times recorded in each territory will then race head to head in national finals, followed by international events to further whittle down the pack.

Good luck to all competitors; there’s a lot of talent out there going unrecognised due to lack of access to mentors, vehicles and track times, and we love seeing it celebrated and realising its potential.

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2015/04/21/gran-turismo-6s-gt-academy-kicks-off-today/feed/0GT Academy 2014 now open, online qualifiers available in Gran Turismo 6http://www.vg247.com/2014/04/22/gt-academy-2014-now-open-online-qualifiers-available-in-gran-turismo-6/
http://www.vg247.com/2014/04/22/gt-academy-2014-now-open-online-qualifiers-available-in-gran-turismo-6/#commentsTue, 22 Apr 2014 05:40:01 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=466036Gran Turismo 6 players are invited to compete in this year’s GT Academy, with Sony and Nissan offering the chance to become a professional race driver.

Now in its sixth incarnation, GT Academy is a driver discovery and development program started in 2008.

Hopefuls are whittled down via a series of online qualifying events within Gran Turismo 6, which lead into national finals and a Race Camp. The final winner undergoes an intensive Driver Development Programme designed by Nissan, and will participate in races around the world as a professional driver, kicking off at the Dubai 24 Hour race in January 2015.

Gamers from Australia, India, Mexico, Middle East and Thailand are invited to participate. Online qualifiers kick off today; for details, check the Gran Turismo website for your region.

“Every GT6 gamer will have the chance to develop their skills in a series of stunning Nissan NISMO vehicles and compare lap times with their friends while competing for a coveted spot at the next stage of the competition,” Polyphony Digital boss Kazunori Yamauchi said,

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2014/04/22/gt-academy-2014-now-open-online-qualifiers-available-in-gran-turismo-6/feed/0GT Academy program extended to Australia this yearhttp://www.vg247.com/2014/02/26/gt-academy-program-extended-to-australia-this-year/
http://www.vg247.com/2014/02/26/gt-academy-program-extended-to-australia-this-year/#commentsWed, 26 Feb 2014 21:38:00 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=451953Gran Turismo fans in Australia have a chance to enter Sony’s GT Academy program this year, which grants one lucky and talented player the chance to become a professional racing driver.

SCE Australia has teamed up with Nissan to bring the program to the antipodes, after a couple of years of success in North America and Europe.

GT Academy begins with a virtual competition, with players required to top local leaderboards via online time trials or live events at local racing meets. 28 top-ranked competitors then compete in a live national final, with the champions sent to the international finals in the UK.

The Australian representative will be competing against 28 drivers – the best of the the rest of the world – to net a coveted place in Nissan’s Driver Development Programme ahead of participation in the Dubai 24 Hours. Three former GT Academy champions have gone on to successful careers in racing.

Details of virtual and live events are expected soon. Gran Turismo 6 is a PlayStation 3 exclusive, although we are expecting a PS4 version at some stage.

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2014/02/26/gt-academy-program-extended-to-australia-this-year/feed/0Gran Turismo: GT Academy video series explores the world of gamers-turned racershttp://www.vg247.com/2013/11/22/gran-turismo-gt-academy-video-series-explores-the-world-of-gamers-turned-racers/
http://www.vg247.com/2013/11/22/gran-turismo-gt-academy-video-series-explores-the-world-of-gamers-turned-racers/#commentsFri, 22 Nov 2013 13:05:16 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=429187Gran Turismo’s GT Academy has been given the documentary treatment by YouTubers Team VVV. The clips give an insider’s look at how the academy’s gamers-turned pro drivers learn the skills necessary to compete on the track. It culminates in the GT Academy 2013 International Finals.

The Finals show comes in five parts, and includes interviews with SKY F1’s Johnny Herbert, 2011 GT Academy winner Jann Mardenborough and 2009 Winner Lucas Ordonez.

Have a watch and let us know what you think.

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2013/11/22/gran-turismo-gt-academy-video-series-explores-the-world-of-gamers-turned-racers/feed/0Gran Turismo 6: PS3 demo out now, GT Academy competition detailedhttp://www.vg247.com/2013/07/02/gran-turismo-6-ps3-demo-out-now-gt-academy-competition-detailed/
http://www.vg247.com/2013/07/02/gran-turismo-6-ps3-demo-out-now-gt-academy-competition-detailed/#commentsTue, 02 Jul 2013 09:34:21 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=384612Gran Turismo 6 has received a PS3 demo, courtesy of Polyphony Digital. Sony has outlined the contents of the demo in a new blog.

Sony’s blog explains that the demo doubles up as an entry to the next round of GT Academy, a training program that lets players compete for a spot to race for real with Nissan. The competition runs from today until July 28. The demo itself will stay live until August 31.

Let us know if you give it a whirl.

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2013/07/02/gran-turismo-6-ps3-demo-out-now-gt-academy-competition-detailed/feed/6Gran Turismo 6 screens show off lovely machines, interiors, Silverstonehttp://www.vg247.com/2013/05/16/gran-turismo-6-screens-show-off-lovely-machines-interiors-silverstone/
http://www.vg247.com/2013/05/16/gran-turismo-6-screens-show-off-lovely-machines-interiors-silverstone/#commentsThu, 16 May 2013 21:49:05 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=367735Gran Turismo 6 is a thing, as you wellknow by now, and while I posted a few shots for you yesterday, I missed quite a few thanks to a hanging download and my ISP throwing a fit over the sun shining. Today, I have remedied the matter by posting almost 100 shots below. Some may be dupes, it’s hard for me to tell unless it’s a Merc or a Ferrari – both of which are in there much to my delight – so apologies for that. However, there are also shots of the Alfa Romeo TZ3 Corsa, interiors and Silverstone, along with shots pertaining to GT Academy. All are mixed together in a tasty boulibase for you.

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2013/05/16/gran-turismo-6-screens-show-off-lovely-machines-interiors-silverstone/feed/20Gran Turismo 5’s GT Academy becomes reality TV series in Februaryhttp://www.vg247.com/2013/01/10/gran-turismo-5s-gt-academy-becomes-reality-tv-series-in-february/
http://www.vg247.com/2013/01/10/gran-turismo-5s-gt-academy-becomes-reality-tv-series-in-february/#commentsThu, 10 Jan 2013 12:08:46 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=328901Gran Turismo 5’s ongoing GT Academy campaign – in which gamers are trained up to become professional race drivers for Nissan – is to become a reality TV show airing in the UK from February 4th. Get more details after the break.

The GT Academy series will air on UK channel ITV 4 on Monday nights at 8pm starting February 4th. There will be repeat showings every Saturday in the early evening and on Sunday mornings.

Sony and ITV’s show follows some 830,000 gamers from 14 European countries who signed up to the GT Academy, each competing to be the fastest Gran Turismo 5 players. The top six players were decided by a National Final event, and raced their way to a spot at the GT Academy Race Camp at UK track Silverstone last year. Then they were trained in-game, and learned the skills necessary to become proficient at the real thing.

The top prize was the chance to represent Europe in Nissan’s 370Z GT4 car at the Dubai International 24 Hour race which takes place this month. Previews of the show have called it tense and sees the gamers-turned-pro racers facing insane pressure in stepping up to the role.

Does this behind-the-scenes glimpse at GT Academy interest you? Would you like to see other games given the same treatment? If so, which ones?

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2013/01/10/gran-turismo-5s-gt-academy-becomes-reality-tv-series-in-february/feed/2GT Academy champion offers tips and tricks todayhttp://www.vg247.com/2012/05/17/gt-academy-champion-offers-tips-and-tricks-today/
http://www.vg247.com/2012/05/17/gt-academy-champion-offers-tips-and-tricks-today/#commentsWed, 16 May 2012 23:21:17 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=259462The US leg of GT Academy 2012 is well under way, with over 600,000 competitors participating in this year’s season since it began on May 1. Those eager to snaffle the chance at a racing contract should tune into Twitch.TV later today, when Bryan Heitkotter, the first US winner, will be handing out free advice. The broadcast kicks off at 6:00PM PDT. Once again, visit the PS Blog for more info.
]]>http://www.vg247.com/2012/05/17/gt-academy-champion-offers-tips-and-tricks-today/feed/0GT Academy 2012 in full swing; qualifying track screened, promo calls revheads to armshttp://www.vg247.com/2012/05/08/gt-academy-2012-in-full-swing-qualifying-track-screened-promo-calls-revheads-to-arms/
http://www.vg247.com/2012/05/08/gt-academy-2012-in-full-swing-qualifying-track-screened-promo-calls-revheads-to-arms/#commentsMon, 07 May 2012 23:37:19 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=256642GT Academy 2012 is under way, and you don’t even need to own Gran Turismo 5 to qualify. Study the curves of the track included the free downloadable qualifier, and be inspired by a stirring trailer.

The GT Academy 2012 demo hit the PlayStation Network on May 2, and allows players to take the first steps on a journey which could end with their becoming a professional race driver. We’re not even kidding; GT Academy is your ticket to fun times and possibly horrific injuries. For the rest of us it’s a chance to see just how classy some armchair drivers really are when we get knocked out in the first round.

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2012/05/08/gt-academy-2012-in-full-swing-qualifying-track-screened-promo-calls-revheads-to-arms/feed/0GT Academy 2012 demo dropping on May 2http://www.vg247.com/2012/04/20/gt-academy-2012-demo-dropping-on-may-2/
http://www.vg247.com/2012/04/20/gt-academy-2012-demo-dropping-on-may-2/#commentsFri, 20 Apr 2012 10:05:30 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=252553Sony will release the standalone GT Academy 2012 demo for participants in this year’s competition on May 2. There’s no word on what content will be included into the taster, such as what car or track, though.

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2012/04/20/gt-academy-2012-demo-dropping-on-may-2/feed/0GT Academy 2012 to start on May 1http://www.vg247.com/2012/04/16/gt-academy-2012-to-start-on-may-1/
http://www.vg247.com/2012/04/16/gt-academy-2012-to-start-on-may-1/#commentsMon, 16 Apr 2012 13:58:20 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=251262Sony’s announced it’ll beginning GT Academy 2012 on May 1, kicking off with the release of a special Gran Turismo demo just for the event.

The online qualification event, created specifically for the competition by Polyphony Digital and Kazunori Yamauchi, won’t need a copy of Gran Turismo 5 to play it and is free to download.

The taster will come with “a set of exclusive challenges that should be a lot of fun whether you’ve played Gran Turismo before or whether you are coming to the game as a complete newbie.”

Once that portion of the competition is done, the national finals await, before heading straight into Racecamp at Silverstone. Winner there will get to progress to aim towards a drive in the Dubai 24 hour race next January.

]]>http://www.vg247.com/2012/04/16/gt-academy-2012-to-start-on-may-1/feed/0GT Academy EU to kick off on March 4http://www.vg247.com/2011/02/15/gt-academy-eu-to-kick-off-on-march-4/
http://www.vg247.com/2011/02/15/gt-academy-eu-to-kick-off-on-march-4/#commentsTue, 15 Feb 2011 13:29:03 +0000http://www.vg247.com/?p=148396Sony’s just announced details of this year’s GT Academy, which will kick off on March 4 in Europe.

The publisher will hold the contest, which has been running since 2009, to find a driver and train them to become a real-life racer using Gran Turismo 5.

And neither, it appears, does anyone else who gets caught up in their silly scandals.

“In Round 2 of the GT Academy held from January 31 to February 6, we have found repeatedly that it was possible to inappropriately cut corners or intentionally hit the walls to shorten lap times,” reads a post on the Gran Turismo website.

“Because of this we are effectively negating Round 2 of the competition, allowing EVERYONE who entered round 2 to automatically progress to Round 3.”

For the uninitiated, GT Academy is a competition that’ll allow one extremely talented Gran Turismo player to – after “intense” training – rocket around the track with a bunch of real pro racers.

Unfortunately, aspiring speed demons will have to keep their pedals well above the metal for a while longer while Sony makes “the necessary adjustments to prepare a fair race environment for everyone.”

So, thanks bunches for that, cheaters. Might we make one teensy suggestion, though? Stop ruining everything. Just a thought.

One of the first GT Academy winners, Lucas Ordonez, has told the EU PS Blog how hard the entire experience has been for him, speaking before the release of the GT5 time trial demo to find new drivers on December 17.

“The whole thing is tough,” he said. “But for me racing cars was my dream, so it was great. Anyone taking part has to be prepared for a real 360 degree change to their life. You have to have total dedication and be prepared to make sacrifices.

“Lars, who won with me, was a great guy and he was a good driver, but I just don’t think he was focused enough and he ended up not being ready to race.”

Ordonez has now secured your race license and driven in the the 24 Hour race in Dubai.